Ex-teacher convicted of touching student seeks treatment

BLOOMFIELD, N.M. — A former Bloomfield High School teacher convicted to molesting a 17-year-old student is asking that part of his sentence be transferred to a mental health facility.

The Daily Times reports that Benjamin Griffith has asked the court to consider transferring him to the Las Vegas Behavioral Health Institute to serve part of his sentence in the Sex Offender Treatment Program.

Griffith was sentenced to 18 months in prison on June 30 after previously pleading guilty to criminal sexual contact with a minor. He was charged in December 2014 in connection to allegations that he touched the breasts of a female student.

Griffith has requested that his sentence be reduced to 12 months, with six months being served at the mental health facility.